August 2024
Anitha
Polackal
,
BSN, RN
Brain & Spine Center
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Houston
,
TX
United States
She uses her considerable skills and calm demeanor to re-direct focus and navigate the situation at hand.
Her patients have expressed their gratitude and appreciation for her care and compassion on multiple occasions. Anitha goes above and beyond as both a patient educator and team player. When patients exhibit anxiety in the clinic, which is not uncommon, she uses her considerable skills and calm demeanor to re-direct focus and navigate the situation at hand. An episode that stands out as the "cherry on top" in addition to the unmatched work she does every day was when we had a brain tumor patient with debilitating weakness who needed to provide a urine sample but was not able to at our lab due to their limited physical ability. Using her skills as a previous ICU nurse for many years, she offered to help collect this patient's sample via catheterization in our clinic, which had not been previously done in our ambulatory clinic. The patient and family members were very thankful that Anitha was able to perform this swiftly while preserving the patient's modesty, and without their having to present to an emergency or inpatient setting with their limited mobility.